Flash memory (both NAND and NOR types) is popular non-volatile solid state memory in use today is. Flash memory is characterized by not being “write-symmetric” when writing data. To illustrate, each storage element of a flash memory can be written from a value of “1” to a value of “0” independently of other storage elements. However, to change a storage element back to a value of “1” a relatively large number of storage elements (called an “erase block”) are set to a “1” value as a group. An erase group might contain hundreds of kilobytes or even several megabytes, and flash management systems that manage frequent updates of small chunks of data may implement relatively complex logic to preserve valid data that may be stored at other locations in the erase block.
In recent years, several new “write-symmetric” non-volatile memory technologies have been introduced that do not have the non-symmetry as described for flash memory, such as Resistive RAM (also known as RRAM or ReRAM) and Magnetic RAM (also known as MRAM), as illustrative examples. In these technologies, a storage element may be written in both directions—from “1” to “0” and from “0” to “1”—without imposing a similar operation on storage elements that neighbor the storage element being written.
Memory write latency may affect overall performance of computing systems, such as servers, computers, and mobile electronic devices, as illustrative examples. Improving write latency for non-volatile memory devices may result in improved system performance and an enhanced user experience.